1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to optical network systems and, more particularly, to a method of automatically provisioning elements added to an optical network system.
2. Background of the Related Art
Data communication networks such as optical line systems are continually increasing in both size and complexity. As these networks and systems increase in size, the network management functions proportionally increase in complexity. This means that the critical tasks of network management, such as provisioning (allocating resources to form a communications link), restoration, reinstatement, and such are also further complicated as networks and systems grow.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to efficiently provision optical line systems (OLSs), since the number of fibered connections in a typical OLS may take days to manually provision. Aside from the initial provisioning that is required for an OLS, as additional network elements are added to the OLS, additional provisioning functions must also be entered into a database of associations. In the past, users entered these associations, which were generally called interpack connections, into the system database via TL1 commands entered from a craft interface terminal (CIT) or element management system (EMS). However, manual entry of the commands was very time consuming and prone to error, since the process could easily take several hours and require several hundred commands to be entered for the addition of a single network element.